


Imagine Dragontalia

by SWAWindsong



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragons, Dragontalia, How Do I Tag, M/M, Oops, Other, What Have I Done, magic trio - Freeform, probably to be continued, song and a ship, supposed to be a one shot, turned into a whole universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-24
Updated: 2015-10-24
Packaged: 2018-04-27 22:20:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5066668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SWAWindsong/pseuds/SWAWindsong
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur just wanted to get away from his family for a little while.  Meeting a dragon was the last thing he expected and he never thought it would go this far.  Who else will they meet on their journey to escape an unaccepting society?</p><p>Each chapter is a different piece of the story in the same universe.  They are written to a different Imagine Dragons song as denoted by the chapter title.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Imagine Dragontalia

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Shy-Gurl914](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Shy-Gurl914).



> This is a SUPER late fic for shy-gurl's birthday. She drew a little doodle of England with a green dragon a while back, and I couldn't resist. I didn't mean to make it this long. I didn't mean to make it an entire universe that I'd really like to continue. I also found out that I can't be serious to save my life. I tried. I swear I tried. 
> 
> Anyway, I took the idea from that tumblr post where the prince keeps getting kidnapped by the same dragon and the dragon keeps kidnapping the same prince. I had about three ideas for this fic, but this one kept bugging me until it...well...got out of hand.

It was probably a terrible idea to be out this deep in the woods all alone, but Arthur had needed to get away from his brothers. They were driving him crazy! Picking on him relentlessly and calling him such brutish names. Arthur was getting to the point where he felt like nothing he did pleased them. If nothing he did was good enough, then he’d just leave and they wouldn’t have to deal with him at all! The thought of running away had crossed his mind, but he just couldn’t bring himself to commit to that much. He’d settle for a few hours of quiet.

His horse came to an abrupt stop, pawing the ground in anticipation. The cool autumn air blew though Arthur’s hair bringing the scent of drying leaves caked with fresh dirt to his nose. Leather from the reins pulled at his fingers as he tried to get Joan to stop fretting. He took a moment to look around the forest, but he couldn’t see anything for the trees. The low light of the afternoon barely filtered through the leaves anymore, and the darkness of the forest was starting to encompass him and constricted his breathing.

“Easy, girl,” He said with a hushed voice, “You smell something?”

Behind him, a branch snapped and Joan spun around to face the sharp noise at Arthur’s command. He dropped the reins and nocked an arrow, prepared for nearly anything that could jump out at him this time of day.

Well, almost anything. Arthur remembered what started to show itself just before dusk. His heart began to race, alighting all of his sense with an intensity that Arthur was not used to. The world came to a complete standstill, and all he could hear was the breath of the wind moving through the cramped forest. He stopped breathing. Held his arrow still so the bow didn’t creak. Arthur tried to minimize sounds by any means he could, moving as little as possible. Joan sensed his unease and also stood completely still without further command. Arthur mentally patted her neck, proud of the way she had learned to read his mood.

Another sharp crack brought his attention back to his arrow and the dark beyond where he had trained it. He strained his eyes in an attempt to see anything in the low light, squinting harder as each second passed.

There was a faint gleam in the shadows. A gleam that Arthur didn’t trust. He took a deep breath in, trying to keep it as quiet as possible, squinting harder to try and make out what he was looking at all while continuing to listen for the slightest sound. Before he could decide what he was seeing, the gleam shifted. Arthur fired an arrow toward the movement, but it sailed through the trees and landed with a soft thump in the dirt beyond the shadows. He was sure he had aimed at the gleam, but it was no longer there.

He brought his arm behind him to fetch another arrow, this time going as slow as he could. Something was watching him. It was just a matter of figuring out what that something was. Until then, he feared startling it any more. He had only just grasped the feathered end of his next arrow when a gigantic green form leapt at his from the shadow beside where his gaze was focused.

Arthur felt himself being ripped off of Joan’s back before he could bring the arrow to his bow. There was nothing to be done. The creature was too fast, too cunning. A sound of wings beating the air around him reached his ears as the end of a tail whipped in front of his vision.

Dragons.

Arthur struggled to regain some semblance of control as the beast carried him over the tree tops into the open sky. The dragon had a firm grip on Arthur’s shoulders, but its talons had not pierced his skin by some miracle. He thanked his lucky stars. It took everything he had to think straight as the dragon carried him higher in the sky. The ground streamed past him in a haze, and his head spun as the trees bent and wavered beneath him. Arthur could maneuver a bit, although his range of motion was limited. Nocking an arrow proved to be too difficult, so he tried a different method. Arthur kicked a leg up towards his hand and reached for the dagger he kept strapped to his boot.

He strained at the effort, grunting as he tried to hold his leg up long enough to grab the weapon. The wind whipped at his back, blowing his cloak around and making it difficult to reach. Finally, Arthur unbuttoned the cover and loosed the knife from its holster. Once he had the dagger in hand, the next step was trying to figure out where he could stab the blasted creature. The only place he could reach were the dragon’s feet which were currently holding him aloft. Before stabbing its foot though, Arthur glanced down to see how far up they had gotten. A wave of nausea punched him in the stomach. They were too high up. He’d never make the landing.

Arthur cursed and forced himself to reconsider. Maybe if he just stabbed one foot, the dragon wouldn’t drop him completely. It was his best chance. Although he seriously doubted it would do anything more than anger the creature.

But, Arthur was angry too.

Without further thought as to what may befall him, Arthur jabbed his dagger into the dragon’s foot. A great roar echoed off the surrounding mountains and turned into half a shriek of pain. The sounds was oddly satisfying as it reverberated in Arthur’s skull. His right side was bathed in hot blood as Arthur slashed the dragon’s foot further. The dragon released one of Arthur’s shoulders and started to descend towards the ground.

Well that went a lot better than expected. Arthur was half certain he was going to be dropped or smashed to the ground in frustration.

The ground grew larger, the blades of grass becoming more discernible as the dragon flew Arthur to the ground. Right before landing, it occurred to Arthur how strange it was that he wasn’t already dead. Sure, dragons kidnapped people on occasion, but they killed a lot more people than they kidnapped. Arthur figured he was a prime target for being murdered at this point. If someone had stabbed his hand, well, a civilized man would have challenged him to a duel. It was doubtful that dragons had any sort of such civil code. But then again, Arthur really didn’t know much about dragons other than to avoid them.

They landed safely on the ground, and the dragon set Arthur down as if he didn’t want to hurt him. Was he really being kidnapped? Why didn’t the creature just kill him and be done with it? So many thoughts and questions sprang to the front of Arthur’s mind.

Even more questions formed when the dragon landed and began talking to him.

“You stabbed me! Why would you stab me you fils de salope?”

“What do you mean, ‘why would I stab you,’ you were kidnapping me! And you keep a civil tongue about my mother!” Who the hell did this dragon think it was?

“Look, I just need to kidnap someone so my father will be happy. I don’t want to hurt you, I’ll bring you back whenever you want. Could you please just help me out?” The dragon’s voice quivered as it spoke. Despite himself, Arthur felt a tug at his chest.

Was he really having this conversation with a dragon?

“You’re kidding, right?”

The dragon curled up and began licking its wound. Instead of answering the question, the creature made a low noise that almost sounded like a sob as it tended to the injury Arthur created. The sound was sort of pathetic whatever it was.

“Look, I’m sorry, alright? No, wait. Why the hell am I apologizing to something that just ripped me off my bloody horse and carried me off!? If you wanted help, you should have asked!”

The dragon set its foot on the ground and glowered at Arthur.

“You think that would have made my father happy?! We’re supposed to be feared! How am I going to impress him when I can’t even kidnap a small boy?” The dragon made a noise that sounded like a strangled growl, somewhere between frustration and distress. Its eyes were still alight with anger though. Arthur was almost sympathetic for half a second before he realized what the dragon had said.

“I am not a boy! I am a man! I’m going to be the king one day too!” Arthur glared right back at the dragon. They stood there, staring each other down, neither one wanting to back down. The hairs on the back of Arthur’s neck stood on end when the dragon didn’t back down.

“So, I stole the king’s beloved son from him. Maybe my father will be proud of me.”

Arthur snorted, “I wouldn’t say ‘beloved’ son. But what makes you think I’ll just let you continue kidnapping me? I’m going home!” For emphasis, Arthur turned on his heel as he spoke and started a brisk march back towards where he hoped Joan…wouldn’t have gone back to the castle like the good mare that she was.

“Uugggghhhhhh. Great, bloody fucking great.” Arthur broke his dramatic exit from the dragon’s presence to throw his head back in frustration. How could he have forgotten? All of the horses were trained to return to the castle if they were separated from their rider. It had proven useful in the past when others had been kidnapped or went missing. Then people knew to look for them. If the horse had survived that was.

Not that his family would care at all. If his brothers found out he had been kidnapped…the princess jokes that were sure to ensue were already pissing Arthur off. Hell, his own father probably wished he was dead anyway. Then his brother, Allistor, could be king instead of scrawny, little, hopeless…Arthur looked at the dragon’s long talons and pointed, gleaming teeth. It could probably breathe fire too. He thought for a moment, wondering why the dragon had not chased after him. Arthur met the dragon’s gaze, noticing that it appeared more curious than anything with its head cocked to the side.

“You know what? Yeah. I’ll agree to let you kidnap me. If you agree to take a chunk out of Allistor’s gigantic fucking ego.”

“Who’s Allistor?”

“My jerkwad of a brother. You don’t have to seriously injure him or anything. Just give him an ugly scar, somewhere embarrassing if you can.”

The dragon considered for a moment, tapping its claw on the ground while it thought. Arthur waited patiently. At least on the outside. Inside, anxiety gnawed at his throat and made his jaw ache as he clenched his teeth. This dragon was probably his best hope at saving any face, but he still didn’t trust it.

“Sure, I can do that. Can you play the part of the intimidated prince for me though? I just need to convince my father. I’m sure he’s been keeping an eye on me.”

“As long as word of this doesn’t get to my brother or father, I’ll do anything. I’ll even dress like a princess if you want me to.” If Allistor got a nasty scar, Arthur hoped it would take some of the ridicule off of him. Arthur would do anything to knock Allistor down a peg. He just didn’t want his brothers to see him wearing the incriminating attire.

“Nah, my father knows I wouldn’t kidnap a princess.” The dragon said, but Arthur did not recognize the expression on its face. Something about it though made Arthur feel uncomfortable. He almost wanted to ask why.

“Alright then, we have an agreement. Now kidnap me.”

Their pact had been made. Arthur played the part of the distressed victim for a few hours, and the dragon gave Allistor a large gash on the side of his face when they came looking for Arthur. By the time Arthur was safe in his own bed, he realized how ridiculous the whole scenario had been. What a stupid notion that a dragon would go around and fake kidnapping people to impress their overly strict parent. And yet, he couldn’t help but think that the world was full of strange coincidences. It was odd really. How Arthur felt like he had more in common with the dragon who had ‘failed’ to kidnap him than his own family.

* * *

Arthur’s chest heaved, tears stung his eyes as he tried to keep them open as the wind snapped at his face. He had no idea where he was going, he just knew he needed to get as far away from the castle as possible. Fucking “Allistor the Great” was driving him insane, blabbering on and on to all the women in the square about his stupid battle scar. At first, the gash had worked like a charm, pissing Allistor off to no end. But now, it was making him more likeable and more popular. And it could now be ignored enough to tease Arthur again.

Joan finally stopped, refusing to listen to Arthur’s kicks anymore.

“Go on, you stupid mare.” He sobbed through the words, kicking at Joan’s sides with half-hearted effort. Instead, she turned around and nibbled at his boot.

“You’re not being helpful.” It was useless though. Joan wouldn’t budge, and Arthur was forced to dismount and take a break. They were far enough away he reasoned. He looked around, spying a small lake in the distance.

Oh.

“Good girl, Joan,” he whispered. All of his senses went on alert. Arthur had not meant to come this close to dragon territory. He turned to start walking back towards the castle. They had definitely gone far enough to get away from his family. A little too far for comfort though.

They had only gone a few steps when Arthur looked back towards the lake. The trees standing between him and the lake swayed in the slight breeze and a few leaves swirled around the glittering water, framed by the woods. Just beyond the lake was that dragon’s cave, the one that had kidnapped him. But it also meant other dragons lived in the area, most of which were not as kind. And yet…

“Go on home, girl.” Arthur said as he slapped Joan’s rear and sent her away. The air seemed to still in the immediate vicinity surrounding him, but he could see the trees were still affected by the drifting air. It felt strange, realizing what he was doing, walking towards the lake instead of away from it. Stopping didn’t seem to be an option though. He tried, but all he could manage was slowing his steps a little. The lake drew him in, slowly, painfully. Whether he wanted to die or whether he wanted to see his dragon friend again, Arthur wasn’t quite sure.

It was strange that he thought of the dragon as a friend.

By the time he made it to the shore and sat down, Arthur decided it didn’t matter. It was too much to expect the same dragon to show up, but it was also too much to expect another dragon to find him and kill him. But maybe. At least he wasn’t around his brother, or his father, or the civilians, or anyone. No one could make fun of him out here.

How long he sat by the lake, Arthur did not know. He had quickly lost himself watching the light bounce off of the water, listening to the trickle of a nearby stream that fed into the lake. Eventually, he allowed himself to relax and laid back against a cool rock.

The sky blurred through his half lidded eyes as he almost fell asleep. Being angry and crying had left him exhausted, and it was so calm in this place. So peaceful despite being as near to the dragons as he was. He lay there, not bothering to fight his listlessness, and Arthur couldn’t tell if he was conscious or not as the colors appeared in the sky in front of his vision.

Maybe he was dreaming. It almost looked like a rose was falling from the sky, circling above Arthur and swaying with the breeze. The red swirled around the green, drawing loops in the air above him. That was an oddly shaped flower though.

Arthur sat up too quickly and the blood to rushed out of his head. He was forced to tear his eyes away to steady himself. But oh God did he want to look. Finally, his head stopped spinning and he could look up again.

“It’s you!” He almost shouted as the last waves of dizziness cleared his head. Relief flooded every inch of Arthur’s body and a warm glow spread across his chest. It had been a long time since he had felt this…relaxed. But, that was exactly what it felt like. Every care he had drifted away and the thought of being killed by a different dragon left his mind entirely.

This was replaced with the fear that this dragon would think Arthur liked him. At all.

“Oh…I mean…what do you want? Need another poor prince to act as your victim?” He tried to sound as bitter as possible. It wasn’t difficult considering how easy it was to remember why he was near dragon territory to begin with. Not to mention it was partially the dragon’s fault. It should have burned Allistor instead of giving him a clean cut.

He immediately regretted being so mean when the dragon landed and he saw a fresh patch of burnt skin on its shoulder. It had even gone through the scales. Apparently Arthur wasn’t the only one having a rough day.

“Well, it wouldn’t hurt.”

“Sorry…” Arthur couldn’t think of anything to say.

“What happened to you?” The dragon asked.

“You know…brothers.” Arthur didn’t want the attention on himself. Not when his scars weren’t as visible. It was easy to forget that the dragon had problems too. Especially when his own were so vivid and clear in his mind still. “What about you?”

“Not kidnapping and terrorizing innocent people enough. I never am.”

“You are welcome to kidnap me again if you want,” he said as he stared at the small rocks between his shoes. It’s not like Arthur had a ride back home or anything anyway.

“Maybe…maybe a little later. How about we go do something that doesn’t involve either of our families.” The dragon said as it leaned most of its weight on one leg. The one that wasn’t burned.

“Please.”

Arthur climbed on its back, the scales providing enough of a grip pull himself up. It took a moment to find a comfortable position. He shifted from side to side, moving around until he found a soft patch that he could sink into. The dragon beat its wings once and Arthur gasped, gripping onto the spikes on its back for support. This wasn’t like before when he had flown with the dragon. This time, Arthur was in control of his own position in the air. Which also meant he could fall off easier.

The dragon turned its head to peek at Arthur on its back. It must have realized how nerve racking it was for Arthur because the wing beats evened out and the two began to glide through the air instead. A few minutes later, Arthur grew accustomed to the way the dragon moved beneath him as they snaked through the air together.

The dragon flew them all the way around the kingdom, skirting the edge of the small villages so people wouldn’t see them. Arthur’s face was whipped by the wind and the smell of pine trees washed over his as they drifted over a different part of the forest. The open sky felt so inviting, clear of any clouds and free of all arguments and slighting remarks. Arthur felt like he could stay up there forever, away from everything that plagued his life. But the ride didn’t take as long as he wanted it to.

Their landing spot was almost as good though. There were no signs of people or dragons. No brick walls or damp caves built into the mountains. Nothing except the tall blades of grass spotted with a few purple clovers and yellow daisies.

They landed and Arthur dismounted without a word. The two didn’t speak for a long while. There wasn’t much to say. Nothing that could cure the pain of their respective emotional wounds. The silence and calmness of their surroundings brought the events that led him to laying in the empty field with a massive dragon to the surface of his thoughts. It was strange how the dragon has so easily lured him away from everyone. But then, it wasn’t really the dragon that had pushed Arthur away.

Arthur’s chest began to ache. Unwanted memories surfaced of his brothers tormenting him and calling him a…words he didn’t even want to repeat silently in his head.

He looked around to find something to distract himself, eyes landing on the dragon’s injury again.

“Hey, um…” Maybe he shouldn’t, “Nevermind.” “

What?” The dragon asked. Arthur wished he had kept his big mouth shut.

“Nothing.” There was silence for a long time, but now it was awkward. Arthur squirmed as he silently wished the dragon wouldn’t pursue the topic. The silence was broken by the dragon.

“If you tell me, I’ll tell you a secret about dragons.”

“What? No, I can’t tell you this. I’m sorry. Ignore me.” The dragon snorted a puff of smoke into the air.

“How about I go first, and then you can decide if you want to share?” Arthur almost laughed, he leaned back against the dragon’s side where he had been resting. There was no way the dragon could have a secret that would be worthy of hearing his.

“Fine, _if_ it’s a good enough secret.”

Arthur fell over as the dragon disappeared from behind him.

“Hey!” He managed to shout before the support left him completely and he dropped heavily to the ground. Arthur rolled over to yell at the dragon, but it wasn’t there anymore.

Instead, there was a very handsome and very naked man…standing a just few steps from him.

Before Arthur stopped to think, he had nocked an arrow and trained it on the man’s chest. There wasn’t even time to stand up. His heart beat against his ribcage and Arthur focused on keeping the bow steady despite his heavy breathing. The shock of finding a naked man standing behind him where his dragon friend had been previously left his nerves on fire. The stranger didn’t say anything as he raised his hands in a defensive position, his eyes wide with fear.

After a moment of facing off, the stranger dropped one arm as he winced. The motion allowed Arthur to see the patch of burnt flesh on his shoulder. It wasn’t some stranger that had snuck up on both of them. He released his breath.

“Y…Drag…wha….” His brain raced, trying to catch up to the events that were unfolding in front of him. Yes, definitely in front on him.

“You can turn into a human?” Arthur asked.

The man gave him a weak laugh before replying, “Yes, but please, I’m much less resilient in this form. I’d appreciate it if you lowered your weapon.” Arthur tore his eyes from the man’s bare chest to look at his bow. He scrambled to throw the bow to the ground and it clattered when it landed. Now that the bow was away, the man dropped his hands and began approaching Arthur.

He stumbled backwards, wide eyed and chest heaving as the man approached him. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the humanoid dragon, but he was still not prepared to deal with its new form. Especially considering _it wasn’t wearing clothes_. His retreat was halted when his hand hit a sharp rock and he fell to the ground. The man stood over Arthur, bending down so that their faces were almost touching to smirk at him. A wave of musk wafted off the man causing Arthur to stop breathing as soon as he inhaled it.

“Is this a good enough of a secret to hear yours?”

“Um…a….yes…could you...I don’t mean to be rude, but could you put some clothes on?” The man didn’t even break to look at his naked self, instead he continued to hold Arthur’s stare.

“Fine, but you have to tell me.” The man that had previously been a dragon borrowed Arthur’s cloak and sat down cross legged beside him. As he was donning the cloak, Arthur took a moment to compose himself. He stared hard at the ground between them.

Now that it was Arthur’s turn, he began to feel queasy. What if his new friend would hate him as much as his family did? He didn’t want to lose his new friend too. Arthur finally glanced up to see the man staring at him with his chin in hands, elbows resting on his knees. There was no way he could get out of this either.

It was easier to avoid speaking altogether and show the dragon-man instead of explaining. The same way the dragon had done for him. Arthur placed both of his hands on the man’s burned shoulder. It was difficult to focus the way he needed to because the man began asking Arthur what he was doing. But Arthur blocked it out. He blocked out the man’s lilting voice, ignored the way his golden locks brushed against his hands, and thought of nothing except the wound.

He could feel the man jerk under his grasp as the area began to glow, but he refused to be stopped. Arthur gazed at the light, and forced energy to flow directly over the patch of skin. It didn’t take long for the area to fade from black to gray to pink again.

Arthur blinked when it was done, and the realization hit him of what had just happened. What he had just revealed. With his hands still hovering over the area where the scar had been, Arthur kept his head lowered as he raised his eyes to see the man’s reaction.

“You can do magic!” The man said in a whisper, as if it were still a secret.

He really shouldn’t have shared that. Arthur didn’t respond as he folded his knees against his chest, tucking his head under his arms. Cold crept into his limbs as he thought about how alone he was because of his stupid, evil, unforgiveable…unchangeable self. The tears from earlier began falling on his cheeks again, but he refused to make a sound.

Maybe the dragon knew about the prejudice magician faced in the kingdom because Arthur felt his cloak wrapped around his back. The cold air was shut out by the cloth, warm from where it had been worn by the dragon-man. It occurred to Arthur that if he was wearing the cloak…

“I SAID PUT SOME BLOODY CLOTHES ON!” He shouted, exposing his tear stained face to glare at the man.

“It feels funny and I don’t want to!” The man said. Before Arthur could complain any further, he turned back into a dragon. “Besides, dragons don’t wear clothes.” Arthur squinted at him, the image of the naked man burned into his retina. Being angry at something distracted him from crying, but it didn’t last long. The fact that Arthur had shown the dragon his magic came to the front of his mind again and fresh tears clouded his vision. He wanted to be alone. Wanted to run away or disappear from the world. But Arthur wanted that a lot. No matter how hard he tried, he was always forced to return home. Not enough food, loneliness, cold weather, there was always something. Every time he returned he looked that much weaker as well.

“It’s ok you know. I don’t think wizards are evil.” The dragon said. Arthur scoffed. Everyone thought wizards were evil. Hell, even Arthur was starting to believe it. But he couldn’t stop himself from wondering if perhaps the dragons wasn’t lying.

“Why do you say that?”

“I think we’re told a lot of things that others want us to believe. There are not always a good justifications for what we’re told though. Look at me! I’m not awful to humans like most dragons.”

Arthur wanted to question it, but he was tired of thinking. Part of him believed what the dragon was saying, but it didn’t add up.

“That’s questionable at best. You still kidnapped me.” And yet here Arthur was, sitting in a large field with the dragon. He had to admit it felt better than being home. “Why aren’t you awful to humans?”

The dragon began to explain. He explained what they were taught as fledglings and the sort of life they were expected to lead. The young were taught that humans were beneath dragons, and that the humans were constantly trying to take over their domain. They were also never supposed to turn into their human forms as it was a sign of inferiority. The dragon had believed all of it. There was no reason not to at first.

But one day, he was captured by the humans. They had built cages made of metal, something the dragons had not seen before, and he had been young. Some of the dragons that were caught managed to break the bars, but he had been too small. The dragons that escaped left him at the mercy of the humans who would surely kill him.

He explained how he was sure he was going to die, alone and a coward to his kind. Until a girl saved him.

The dragon talked about how he became obsessed with the girl, going to see her when his father wasn’t watching. Arthur listened quietly, glad for the distraction and yet not ready to speak himself. It was calming, listening to the dragon talk about the things they did together, the adventures they went on. The clover in the field leaned in the breeze, bringing a sweet smell with it. He could have sat there forever listening to the dragon talk about the girl.

“It didn’t last though.” The dragon said, and then he went quiet. Arthur was afraid of what was coming next, but he had to know.

“What happened?”

“My father found out. Burned her right in front of me. I never forgave him for that…he never forgave me either.”

Arthur swallowed a dry lump in his throat. That could be him next if they weren’t careful.

“Wouldn’t it be easier to believe the things they told you though? Or maybe fake it?”

The dragon snorted out a puff of smoke, “Easier. I tried. I tried to fake it for a while too. And I apologized, and did everything I could to make it up to him. But he tried to make her out as a monster saying she was trying to deceive me. Then I realized it wasn’t her that was spinning lies. It was them. The ones who left me to die in the metal cages.”

Arthur cringed. He couldn’t help but feel the same way. After all the stories his own brother and father had told him about the evil of wizards. Arthur didn’t think he was evil. They may have had stories, but Arthur didn’t want to act like the people in the stories. He could use the magic to heal people, or protect them. Just because he was born with the ability to manipulate the energy around him didn’t mean he was inherently bad.

And yet here he was, helping their enemy. What should have been an enemy, at least.

“Is that why you won’t kidnap princesses?”

“Yeah.”

There wasn’t anything else Arthur could say. It was hard to imagine losing something that he loved that much though. Arthur never felt like he loved anything that didn’t make him feel guilty, so he always did his best to distance himself from those things.

“I’m really sorry.”

They spend the afternoon together, soaking up the sun, speaking of unimportant matters. The dragon talked more about the girl, Jeanne. Arthur talked about some of his favorite spells. There was a small argument about the dragon’s hair when he was in his human form, but in the end the dragon flatly refused to get it cut.

“We spent all this time together and I still don’t know your name, or if you even have a name.”

“I’m Francis.”

* * *

“Leave me alone!” Arthur said as he turned to storm off down the hall.

“What’s wrong, _princess_? Missing being a little damsel in distress?” Allistor shouted as he ran to catch up to Arthur. Arthur rolled his eyes but kept up the brisk pace, mind set on escaping the castle. He didn’t get very far before a weight rested on his shoulder and stopped his forward motion with a jolt.

“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” Allistor’s voice was low, but Arthur refused to be intimidated by it. He spun on his heel and lowered his own voice to an equal octave.

“Maybe, I’d rather a dragon eat me than deal with your bullshit. Ever think of that?” Although he said the words with such venom a viper would be jealous, Arthur knew it wasn’t true. It had been a long time since he believed a dragon would eat him.

Allistor’s face went slack and his mouth gaped in surprise. The reaction was perfect, and Arthur tried to save a mental picture. His brothers never understood how bad they made Arthur feel sometimes. It had been easier in the past to simply run away and find Francis, but he’d been doing it too often lately. His disappearances had spurred the teasing to dangerous levels and it was high time he fought back.

One thing was true though. Arthur would rather spend his time with one of the most hated species in the world than with his own family.

The two stood and stared daggers at each other for a long moment. As soon as Allistor broke the eye contact for a fraction of a second, Arthur turned around and marched straight out the door.

That was when he heard the roaring.

Arthur’s head snapped in the direction of the sound and was met with a grey stone wall. It took a moment to find a nearby window and Arthur ran to look out of it. While he knew what had caused the first roar, he didn’t recognize who it belonged to. It still made him nervous that the sound was so close to the kingdom.

His stomach dropped to his feet when he heard the second roar.

He gave himself a moment to glance out the window, even though he didn’t need the confirmation now. The second roar, Arthur did recognize.

High above the skyline a red rose with bright green leaves was being plucked out of the air by a much larger, brown, angry dragon. Arthur tried to gather his courage, managing to return his stomach to its proper place in his torso from where it had dropped. But it was ice cold and chilled his gut.

Allistor might have been shouting at Arthur, but it didn’t matter. Arthur was already halfway down the hall before he heard anything other than the roars echoing through his bones. He ran as hard as he could, and it wasn’t hard enough. Through the castle, down the stairwell, and out the front entrance he ran. He didn’t have a plan, but he tried to think of something as he tore through the courtyard to the outside gate. His chest ached for oxygen and his legs burned with exertion, but Arthur kept running.

The thoughts drained from his head as another ear splitting roar shook the ground under his feet. He didn’t have time to think. The two dragons were spiraling towards him at break neck speed, hurtling through the air with nothing but desperation keeping them in the air.

Arthur looked back towards the gates of the place he had once called home. There would be no going back after this. He knew it.

“FRANCIS!” He shouted as loud as he could, making his chest seize at the effort.

It appeared Francis had heard him as the green dragon broke free and plummeted toward the spot where Arthur was standing. Arthur watched closely. He’d probably only have one chance at this, and he needed to focus. It was fortunate that Francis was so small compared to the other dragon who was having a difficult changing direction so quickly. The lost momentum would give Arthur the time he needed to separate the two. The air stung his nose as he inhaled, raising his hands above his head.

Francis landed heavily beside him and Arthur did not wait as the dirt was knocked into his face. A shimmering wall of gold exploded above him, surrounding Francis in him in a protective circle. Arthur braced himself as a plume of fire rained down on them to be blocked by the shield.

He smirked to himself before he chanced a glance at Francis who was covered in scrapes and burn marks. There were more than a few places that were trickling with streams of blood too and large patches of missing scales. The sight made his stomach clench.

A loud thump brought Arthur’s attention back to the brown dragon who was now clawing at his shield. Arthur cursed to himself and redoubled his efforts. He couldn’t afford any distractions.

“What the FUCK do you think you’re doing?”

Shit.

I COULD ASK YOU THE SAME THING! Arthur wanted to shout back at Allistor. He hadn’t expected him to catch up so quickly, much less be stuck in the force field with them.

“ _Are you helping this…monster?! WITH MAGIC?!?!_ ” Allistor spat at Francis. Arthur could see the gold shield wavering as the words pierced through his sternum straight into his heart. The brown dragon saw it too, the tiny cracks that were forming over the barrier. Arthur stopped breathing, stopped thinking altogether as the brown dragon bathed their circle in red flames that licked at the holes of the ceiling.

Then Arthur felt Francis’ presence at his back. The warmth from his massive body washed over Arthur as Francis bellowed at Allistor. His bones rattled at the sound, jarring his thoughts and bringing Arthur’s focus back to his task. There would be time for thinking about it later when they weren’t about to die at the hands of a murderous, power-crazy beast.

He could hear Allistor’s shriek as his brother stumbled away from them. Arthur couldn’t see the events unfolding, but it was enough to hear it. Enough to know that Francis had his back. It wasn’t going to put an end to their predicament though.

“Francis!” Arthur shouted amidst the dragon trying to break down his barrier and his brother nearly thwarting his efforts.

“We’re going to need a plan,” Arthur managed to get out as he concentrated on the gold barrier. Sweat beaded on his brow as he tried to keep the flow of magic steady. At this pace, it wouldn’t be long before he ran out of energy altogether. They were going to have to end this fight, and soon.

“We could run,” Francis offered. It was tempting but Arthur knew they wouldn’t get very far. They needed a more permanent plan.

“Can you turn your arrows into ice?” Francis asked when Arthur didn’t reply. Arthur nodded in response. It wasn’t like he could fire the arrow and keep the barrier up at the same time though. Francis appeared to have a plan as he turned into his human form next to Arthur. It was impossible to imagine what he was planning to do while he was in a much more vulnerable form beyond just being naked.

Arthur barely contained his laughter as he heard his brother’s high pitched screaming from behind him. If only he could see Allistor’s face. His stomach ached from trying to avoid doubling over from laughter.

The barrier flickered and dropped as his concentration broke and Arthur was forced to redouble his efforts to put it back in place. They were very fortunate that their aggressor was not faster. Another wave of fire washed over the new shield and he dragon growled in frustration behind it. It hadn’t taken half a second to put a new barrier up, but the energy required left Arthur feeling sleepy and his arms heavy. Francis was taking too long to nock an arrow. Arthur chanced a glance, careful not to lower his guard on the barrier this time. His breath caught at the sight of Francis whose own limbs were covered in burn marks. Arthur watched him wince as he lifted the bow and arrow above his head. He wondered for a moment if Francis knew how to fire it, but there wasn’t any time for that. Arthur was forced to bet their lives on Francis.

“On my count,” Francis said, and Arthur returned his eyes to the shield and began to prepare for the switch from the shield to the arrow. He hoped more than anything Francis knew what he was talking about. That turning the arrow into ice would somehow work.

Francis counted down from three, each second draining more energy from Arthur. Hurry up, count faster. He managed to hold out until the end. Arthur lowered the shield on the count of one and turned to look at the arrow poised in Francis’ grip. It took next to no time at all and the arrow turned crystal clear in Francis’ hand before being released into the sky. Arthur let out his breath and felt the energy drain out of him. If this wasn’t enough…

Without thinking, Arthur added another spell to the arrow before it had a chance to reach its target. It on a straight path towards to dragon’s chest when it grew in size and burst into a bright, blue color that shimmered against the dark scales of the dragon. The sight was so…peaceful.

Then everything went black.

* * *

It felt like he was floating and sinking at the same time. He couldn’t feel anything that could have been keeping him up, and yet Arthur felt like he was being smothered into the ground. The world was dark around him and he figured he must be dead.

So this was what death felt like. Arthur took a moment to savor the feeling, not knowing how long it would last. Would death be like this forever? Or would it go away as fast as it had come?

There was a shuffling sound next to him and it took a long while for Arthur to register what he was hearing. It sounded almost like a person. But he couldn’t see anyone.

Right, Arthur remembered he had to open his eyes to see.

He blinked a few times as the light broke into his vision. The dotted green and yellow above him made Arthur think he was probably in a forest. Maybe he wasn’t dead after all.

The shuffling continued and Arthur tried to turn his head towards the noise. He was greeted by a bare ass that was sitting at eye level and close enough to touch.

“Fucking…” Arthur trailed off, too weak to say anything else despite the spark of anger he felt in his chest. He closed his eyes, determined to pretend he was dead now, but the other person had already heard him.

“Ah! Arthur you’re awake!” Francis said, with a little too much joy for Arthur’s taste.

“No. No, I’m really not.”

“Hush, now. Stop being ridiculous. You need to eat.”

Arthur wanted nothing more than to disagree, but his stomach protested vehemently as a savory scent reached his nose.

“Fine.”

It took most of his effort to sit up, but Arthur rejected the help his nude friend offered. The thought of having to be helped by someone who refused to wear clothes was repulsive. Arthur took the bowl of soup after he managed to sit up straight.

He took a small bites of the most delicious soup he had ever tasted in his life. Bits of rabbit swirled in the thick broth and it warmed every inch of Arthur as it trickled down his throat into his stomach. A few mouthfuls was all he could manage before lifting the spoon again seemed too difficult, but he was still hungry. Arthur laid against the tree as he stared at the bowl that mocked him from its place in his lap.

Francis took the bowl from his hands and raised the spoon to his mouth for him. Arthur wanted to protest. He didn’t need help to feed himself.

Well, he didn’t want to need help…his stomach growled and pain rippled across his belly.

A smile spread across Francis’ face as Arthur accepted a bite of food. He wanted to be angry, but Arthur noticed something that distracted him from that thought.

“What happened to your injuries?” Arthur paused for a moment before he added, “Actually, what happened? At all…”

“Well, I’m not exactly sure when you passed out. But the arrow worked! A little too well actually. Shot a hole right through my father…” Francis’ face twitched in pain. He probably should have looked a little sadder than he did, but Arthur didn’t care. They did what had to be done. It didn’t take long for Francis to continue as if nothing had happened.

“After that, your, what I presume was your brother, got up and started shouting about witchcraft and how you were a disgrace to the family. I didn’t hear a whole lot of it. The villagers started gathering and I decided to leave and take you with me. It was a bit of a shock for everyone when I turned back into a dragon. Even your loud-mouthed brother shut up. I hope you don’t mind though. I was afraid to leave you there with…well…them. I…um…well I suppose we can’t exactly go back.”

The words hurt, but it was probably the best thing Francis could have done in that situation. Especially considering Arthur wasn’t even conscious to fend for himself at the time. He might have never gotten a chance to wake up before they burned him at the stake.

“It’s fine.” Arthur wrapped the blanket that was around his shoulder tighter. Despite the fire nearby, he felt a chill creep into his bones. Francis was right. There would be no going back now. He tried to smile a little, to let Francis know he really meant that things were fine. But they both knew what was at stake.

Francis continued, “After that I flew as far as I could manage. I wanted to get further than I did, but my wings were having trouble supporting both of us. When I finally stopped to try and get some rest, there was someone standing in the clearing. I was about to keep flying, but the person yelled for me to come down. Said that he wanted to help. I wasn’t about to argue.

“So I landed, and get this, this guy knows magic too! He healed all of my wounds and helped me set up camp. There wasn’t much he could do for you though. He said you had used too much energy and just needed to sleep it off and have a good meal when you woke up.”

“Where are we?” Arthur asked. Francis’ smile was replaced by him opening his mouth and closing it while looking past Arthur. So Francis had no idea where they were.

“You’re in the Forfrysning Forest,” an unfamiliar voice answered Arthur. He looked around for the source of the voice and found a blonde man with ice blue eyes watching him, his hair held up by a cross shaped hair piece.

“Ah, Arthur. This is Lukas. He’s the magician I was telling you about.”

Arthur didn’t know whether he should be pleased or not. Meeting another magician had sounded promising, but now it was questionable.  The man seemed listless and annoyed at the same time.

“Umm. Hello,” Arthur said in an attempt to be friendly. The man just stared and it began to make Arthur feel uncomfortable.

“You have a dragon too?” Arthur wasn’t the only one confused by the words. It appeared Francis was as well given that he whipped around and nearly spilled the soup that he was still holding.

“Too?” Francis repeated.

The sound of beating wings broke the silence as another dragon approached their camp site and landed in a nearby clearing. This new dragon was red with black under its wing. The bright scales glinted in the low light of the forest. Arthur and Francis looked at each other, both wide eyed with their mouths gaping open.

_There were more of them._

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed it! And feel free to give me suggestions! I'm starting to take writing a little more seriously (before I was just dicking around...although, I really can't claim that I'm not still dicking around given what happened here.)


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